10 May 2021

Changing times

When I was in my 20s I wanted an Eddystone EC10 receiver. In the end I got one via a friend whose dad worked there. 

Mechanically, they were lovely with a great case and a dial with silky smooth tuning. 

Electrically, they were dreadful. As I recall, the whole 10m band occupied about 1.5cm of dial. With a low IF the image rejection on 10m was appalling. It used OC171 germanium transistors. 

By comparison with modern receivers it was bad, really bad. It is some time since I looked, but at one time the second hand price was about twice the retail price when they were first launched, which was £48. I have no idea why I wanted one looking back.

There is a page about these receivers on my website. See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/ec10 .  Please be aware this will change when the "new" site is released. If in doubt use www.g3xbm.co.uk as this will always point to the right pages.

The photo shows the Mk II version with an S meter. I had the Mk I version.

UPDATE 0845z:  A quick look on eBay showed a Mk II at £78. No doubt the transistors would have become leaky and in need of replacement, unless this has been done. I suspect most are bought as collectors items these days.

1 comment:

  1. I agree with your comments. I was loaned one and couldn't understand why the owner was so enthusiastic about it. It was very deaf indeed. Very nice case and controls though. They could be a nice base for a project. The eddy 956 was quite different. It was general coverage over something like five bands. It was okay I suppose but I couldn't get enthusiastic about it.

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